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Civil legal aid regret The House of Lords heard Lord Pannick’s motion to regret the Civil Legal Aid (Remuneration) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations on 7 May. Introducing the debate, Lord Pannick said that the regulations were just “one example of many where the changes which this Lord Chancellor is imposing are far more damaging than any disease which they purport to treat”. The debate drew cross-party support and 13 peers spoke in favour of the motion, highlighting defects both in the regulations – which came into effect in April and limit the availability of legal aid for proceedings in judicial review – and in the principle of having a non-lawyer as Lord Chancellor.
Bar Council Officers 2015 The Bar Council has announced the election of its Chairman, Vice-Chairman and Treasurer for 2015. Chairman-elect is Alistair MacDonald QC, Vice-Chairman elect is Chantal-Aimée Doerries QC and Treasurer-elect is Lorinda J Long. The new Officers take up their new posts in January 2015. Until then, Alistair MacDonald QC will continue to serve as Vice Chairman of the Bar.
Magna Carta conference Temple Church is holding an international conference on Magna Carta, Religion and the Rule of Law on Saturday 7 June.
Civil legal aid regret The House of Lords heard Lord Pannick’s motion to regret the Civil Legal Aid (Remuneration) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations on 7 May. Introducing the debate, Lord Pannick said that the regulations were just “one example of many where the changes which this Lord Chancellor is imposing are far more damaging than any disease which they purport to treat”. The debate drew cross-party support and 13 peers spoke in favour of the motion, highlighting defects both in the regulations – which came into effect in April and limit the availability of legal aid for proceedings in judicial review – and in the principle of having a non-lawyer as Lord Chancellor.
Bar Council Officers 2015 The Bar Council has announced the election of its Chairman, Vice-Chairman and Treasurer for 2015. Chairman-elect is Alistair MacDonald QC, Vice-Chairman elect is Chantal-Aimée Doerries QC and Treasurer-elect is Lorinda J Long. The new Officers take up their new posts in January 2015. Until then, Alistair MacDonald QC will continue to serve as Vice Chairman of the Bar.
Magna Carta conference Temple Church is holding an international conference on Magna Carta, Religion and the Rule of Law on Saturday 7 June.
Chair of the Bar reports back
Marie Law, Director of Toxicology at AlphaBiolabs
A £500 donation from AlphaBiolabs has been made to the leading UK charity tackling international parental child abduction and the movement of children across international borders
Marie Law, Director of Toxicology at AlphaBiolabs, outlines the drug and alcohol testing options available for family law professionals, and how a new, free guide can help identify the most appropriate testing method for each specific case
By Louise Crush of Westgate Wealth Management
Marie Law, Director of Toxicology at AlphaBiolabs, examines the latest ONS data on drug misuse and its implications for toxicology testing in family law cases
Responding to criticism on the narrow profile of government-instructed counsel, Mel Nebhrajani CB describes the system-wide change at GLD to drive fairer distribution of work and broader development of talent
The odds of success are as unforgiving as ever, but ambition clearly isn’t in short supply. David Wurtzel’s annual deep‑dive into the competition cohort shows who’s entering, who’s thriving and the trends that will define the next wave
Where to start and where to find help? Monisha Shah, Chair of the King’s Counsel Selection Panel, provides an overview of the silk selection process, debunking some myths along the way
Do chatbot providers owe a duty of care for negligent misstatements? Jasper Wong suggests that the principles applicable to humans should apply equally to machines
There is no typical day in the life as a Supreme Court judicial assistant, says Josephine Gillingwater, and that’s what makes the role so enjoyably diverse
